Apparatus for ventilating railroad cars



J. D. STROBELL APPARATUS FOR VENTILATING RAILROAD CARS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 12 1941 T A a m i.q|||1| o :E e NH R T .rE 0 N I TN! m ||l E N H a a J M ml 1 l 7 1 7 Jan. 4, 1944.

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[xaminw Jan. 4, 1944. J. D. STROBELL APPARATUS FOR VENTILATING RAILROAD CARS Filed March 12 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Jan. 4, 1944 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE John D. Strobell, New Haven, Conn., assignor to The Safety Car Heating and Lighting Company, Inc., a corporation of Delaware Application March 12, 1941, Serial No. 382,868

2 Claims.

This invention relates to apparatus for ventilatin a railroad car.

One of the object of this invention is to provide ventilating apparatus which is simple, thoroughly practical, and durable in use. Another object is to provide apparatus of the above character, the manufacture of which will be economical both from the standpoint of labor and materials used. Another object is to provide apparatus of the above character in which the structural elements are so disposed as to attain a high degree of strength without heavy construction. Another object is to provide apparatus of the above character which may be easily and quickly installed on a car without extensive alteration thereof. A further object is to rovide apparatus of the above character which operates effectively regardless of the direction of travel of the car. A still further object is to provide apparatus of the above character which introduces fresh air into the car while preventing or hindering the entrance of foreign particles therein. Other objects will be in part obviou and in part pointed out hereinafter.

The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction, combinations of elements, and arrangements of parts as will be exemplified in the structure to be hereinafter described and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the following claims.

In the accompanying drawings in which is shown one of the various possible embodiments of the mechanical features of this invention,

Figure 1 is a diagrammatical top plan view of a railroad car having the ventilating apparatus installed therein;

Figure 2 is a diagrammatical side elevation of the car shown inFigure 1;

Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical section taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is an enlarged horizontal section taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 2; and,

Figure 5 is a vertical section taken on the line 5-5 of Figure 4.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the several views of the drawingS.

As conducive to a clearer understanding of certaln features of this invention, it might here be pointed out that the shipment of perishable and certain other commodities in freight cars often requires that the cars be ventilated. In the past, to provide ventilators in cars equipped with ice bunkers, the hatches in the car roofs have been partially opened. This ha not been satisfactory because foreign material, such as cinders, enters the car and also these hatches are seldom positioned so that practical and efllcient air circulation is obtained within the car. Another system of ventilating freight cars has been to place ventilators in the ends of the cars. This has proved unsatisfactory because the air in the space between the ends of adjacent cars is in a state of turbulence, causing non-uniform pressure conditions which preclude a sufficient flow of air through the ventilator into or from the car. It is accordingly another object of this invention to provide ventilating apparatus for a railroad car or the like which overcomes the above-mentioned difficulties, as well as many others.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, and to Figures 1 and 2 in particular, a freight car, generally indicated at It), has preferably four ventilators, generally indicated at ll, i2, I3 and i4, mounted on its side walls l5 and Iii. As these ventilators are substantially similar in construction, detailed description will be limited to the construction of ventilator l4.

As best seen in Figures 2 and 3, ventilator l4 includes an intake or exhaust box generally indicated at H and a duct generally indicated at i8. Box i1 fits over an opening 20 (Figure 4) in the side wall iii of the car and has a side wall 2| (Figures 3 and 4) top and bottom walls 22 and 23 (Figures 3 and 5), and an end wall 24 (Figures 4 and 5), the side opposite wall 24 being open to admit air. Connecting end wall 24 and side wall 2| is a corner 24a which is preferably curved for purposes to be disclosed more fully hereinafter. Flanges 25 extend outwardly from the top, bottom, and end walls of the box and provide means for connecting the box to the car side wall IS. The side of the box which faces the nearest end of the car is open, and bottom wall 23 slants downwardly toward this side (Figure 5). A door 26 is provided for closing the open side of the box, and it preferably is hingedly mounted thereon by a pin 21 and lugs 28. Suitable catches (not shown) are provided on car side wall I6 and on boxl9 by means of which door 26 may be locked in an open or closed position.

The central and lower portions of duct I8 (Figure 3) are preferably rectangular in cross section, and its lower end is closed by a bottom wall 33 which slants outwardly and downwardly toward bottom wall 23 of box ii. The outside wall 3| of duct i8 preferably abuts against the inner side of car wall IS, the distance between duct side iii/imam walls 23 and 30 (Figure 4) being preferably substantially the same as the width of opening in car wall [6. Duct side wall 3i (Figures 3 and 4) terminates at the top of opening 26, and flanges 32 are provided on duct side walls 29 and 30 and on its bottom wall 33 for connecting the bottom of the duct over opening 20. The flanges 25 and 32 of the box and duct may be connected to the car side wall in any suitable manner, such as by nuts and bolts 34 which extend through the flanges and car wall.

Duct l8 (Figure 3) extends upwardly from exhaust 0r intake box I! in the insulated space 35 between the inner car wall 36 and the outside wall l6. Adjacent the top of the car above the top of any lading that may be placed therein when the car is in use, an elbow IBa is formed in the duct. This elbow extends through an opening 31 (Figure 3) in the inner wall 36 of the car and has a funnel-shaped mouth 38 which is preferably substantially greater in size than the cross-sectional area of duct l8 for reasons to be described hereinafter. A flange 39 is formed on the edge of mouth 38 for connecting the duct mouth to wall 36.

Referring now to Figures 4 and 5, a series of flat baiiles 40 are vertically positioned within the lower portion of duct 16 and extend outwardly through opening 20 in car side wall l6. These baffles are preferably parallel to the open end of box l1, and each has a right angle flange 4| (Figure 4) formed on its inner edge which is secured to the inner wall of duct I6 in any suitable manner, such as by welding. The outer edges of the bafiles are connected by a pair of spacers 42 and 43 which are preferably welded to the bailles and hold them in parallel relationship to each other. The bailles are of graduated widths, beginning with the baffle adjacent the open end of box I! which extends only a slight distance into the box and increasing in width to the baffle at the other end of the series which extends a substantial distance into the box. As shown in Figure 5, box wall 23 slopes downwardly toward the end of the car, and the lower edges of baffles 40 are preferably spaced from wall 23 of box I! to permit air to flow therebeneath and cinders to escape from the box, all as will be described more fully hereinafter. The upper edges of baffles 40 preferably lie in the same plane and are slightly spaced from box top 22.

Referring now to Figure 1, four ventilators of the type described hereinabove are positioned on car 10, two on opposite sides adjacent each end thereof. The intake or exhaust boxes are positioned in the lower portion of the car so that they may be reached from the ground, and to facilitate access to and operation of doors 26. The open side of each box faces that end of the car nearest thereto, and thus two boxes are always facing into the stream of air passing the car when it is in motion; the other pair faces away from this stream. When the car is in motion, the maximum air pressure available at the open sides of the boxes adjacent the leading end of the car is equivalent to the velocity pressure of air corresponding to the relative velocity between the car and the air. The pressure within the car is substantially that of the atmosphere so that the difference between the pressures at the open sides of the intake boxes and the internal pressure is available for causing air to flow into the car. When the car is standing still and a wind is blowing, an air stream enters the car in the same manner as when the car is moving. Thus, the

ventilators havin openings facing the direction of movement of the car or toward a wind act as intake ventilators and direct a flow of air into the car. The stream of air passing the ventilators at the opposite end of the car creates a low pressure area within these ventilators and accordingly the ducts connected thereto, causing them to exhaust air from the interior of the car.

When a ventilator is directing air into the car, the baflles 40 in the ventilators change the direction of the air stream upwardly into duct i8, distributing it uniformly over the duct cross section. This is accomplished because each baffle extends a slightly greater distance into the intake box, and thus each bafile directs a portion of the air stream into the duct. By thus evenly changing the direction of the air stream, the baffles eliminate considerable turbulence within the lower portion of the ventilator, tend to render the pressures therein more uniform, and hence increase the quantity of air that can be handled.

Referring to Figure 4, the curved corner 24a connecting side and end walls 2| and 24 also aids in achieving this same effect in directing the air passing the innermost baflle around this corner into the duct. At the upper end of the intake ducts l8 the direction of the flow is again changed by the curved elbows, and because the mouths of these elbows are of substantially greater size than the cross-sectional area of the ducts, the air flows around the elbow, through the enlarged mouth 38, and into the car evenly and smoothly without turbulence and expands in diffusing rather than jet action.

Ventilators ll also effectively prevent the entrance of cinders and other foreign material into the car. When cinders first enter an intake ventilator, they strike the bailles or the end of the intake box, follow to the inclined bottom 23 thereof, and. roll out. If this does not stop the cinders, they are directed at right angles by the baffles against the inside wall of duct 16, and then to enter the car they must again turn at right angles, overcome the force of gravity, and travel up through the duct before they can enter the car. Thus, all foreign material must pass through a tortuous passage in the lower portion of the ventilator and then must overcome the force of gravity before it can enter the car. Foreign material thus stopped by the tortuous passage or th force of gravity falls to the bottom wall of duct I8 which because of its slant directs all foreign material outwardly onto the bottom wall of the intake box. This wall, because it slants toward the open side of the box and is spaced from the baiiles, directs the foreign material out of the ventilator.

Thus, foregin material is effectively prevented from entering the car. Furthermore, the car is practically and efficiently ventilated by the apparatus disclosed hereinabove, which is operative regardless of the direction of travel of the car. Accordingly, thoroughly practical and efficient apparatus for ventilating a car has been provided which effectively and efficiently overcomes the difiicnlties mentioned hereinabove.

As many possible embodiments may be made of the above invention and as many changes might be made in the embodiment above set forth, it is to be understood that all matter hereinabove set forth, or shown in the accompanying drawings is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

I claim:

1. In a ventilator for delivering air to the interior of a railroad car, in combination, an air intake box positioned in the lower portion of the side wall of said car and extending outwardly therefrom, said box having an opening facing the nearest end of said car, a duct leading upwardly from said box and opening into the interior of said car in the upper portions thereof, and a pluralityof batiies positioned in said intake box and the lower portion of said duct and adapted to direct the flow of air upwardly into said duct from said box, said bailles being positioned substantially perpendicularly to the side wall of said car and extending into the stream of air entering said box when the car is in motion, whereby said baflles, said box and said duct form a tortuous passage to trap foreign material passing thereinto.

2. In a ventilator for delivering air to the interior of a railroad car, in combination, an air intake box positioned in the lower portion of the side wall of said car and extending outwardly therefrom, said box having an opening facing the nearest end of said car, a duct leading upwardly from said box and opening into the interior of said car in the upper portions thereof, and a plurality of battles positioned in said intake box and the lower portion of said duct and adapted to direct the flow of air upwardly into said duct from said box, the bottom of said duct slanting outwardly and downwardly into said intake box and the bottom of said intake box slanting downwardly toward the open end thereof, whereby said baiiles, said box, and said duct form a tortuous passage to trap foreign material passing thereinto and said slanting bottom causes foreign material trapped by said passage to flow out of said ventilator.

JOHN D. S'I'ROBELL. 

